Top Stories October 3rd

BD Board Members Honored


10/3/10 - Four members of the Beaver Dam School Board were honored recently by the Wisconsin Association of School Boards. The recognition was the result of members attending state and national training programs, which were designed to acquaint its participants with important educational issues and help them strengthen their leadership skills. Among the items studied by the members were issues such as new legislation, negotiations, the best practices for technology and education, facilities issues, budgeting, and financial matters facing schools today. Receiving recognition this year were Joanne Tyjeski at level one, Marge Jorgensen at level two, Bev Beal-Loeck at level four, and Gary Spielman at level five, which is the highest level of recognition awarded.

Judge Asks Vatican for Cooperation in Lawsuit

10/3/10 - A federal judge has asked the Vatican to cooperate in serving legal papers to the pope and two other Catholic officials in connection with a Wisconsin lawsuit. Terry Kohut sued Pope Benedict and the Vatican in April. He accuses them of looking the other way while he and 200 other boys at a suburban Milwaukee school-for-the-deaf were molested by the late Father Lawrence Murphy in the 1970’s. Federal Judge Rudolph Randa signed a request to have the Vatican serve the legal papers. But the Vatican is not required to do it – and attorneys say the church has not cooperated with similar requests in other legal cases. The judge’s order was signed last weekend, and it was released on Friday by the Survivors’ Network of Those Abused by Priests. Kohut’s lawsuit said the pope and other top church leaders knew about Murphy’s crimes and tried to cover them up. Court records released in March showed that the Vatican failed to defrock Murphy after Milwaukee church leaders asked them twice to do so, and Benedict and a top deputy called off a church trial in the case.

Senate Candidate Johnson: Global Warming “Unproven”

10/3/10 - Wisconsin U.S. Senate candidate Ron Johnson says global warming is an "unproven" science that shouldn't dictate U.S. policies. The Republican business owner said Thursday that domestic efforts to curtail global warming would hurt American businesses and send jobs overseas. Johnson is facing Democratic incumbent Sen. Russ Feingold in the general election. A recent poll shows Johnson with a slight lead. Johnson has attributed global warming to sunspot activity or natural climatic variation over time, which many climate scientists say are insignificant factors compared to human-generated greenhouse gases. On Thursday, Johnson went a step further by calling global warming itself unproven. The Feingold campaign calls Johnson's position "out of touch with reality."

Eight Months for Man Who Head butted 13-year-old

10/3/10 - He head-butted a 13 year old boy and punched an elementary school coach. That has earned Milton Summers eight months in jail. The Green Bay man apologized to the boy's parents, saying his actions were misguided and brought on by the bullying of his son. Summers was charged after an April confrontation at Oneida Nation Elementary School. He faced down several members of a lacrosse team after hearing 95 dollars had been stolen from his son's locker. Summers was accused of head-butting the teenager and pushing him into a fence. He then reportedly punched the coach twice in the face when he tried to pull Summers off the child.

Tough Times for WI Potato Farmers

10/3/10 - It has been a tough year for Wisconsin-grown potatoes. Wisconsin potato growers suffered 10-to-30 million dollars in damages from last week’s rains and resulting floods. While the crops had initially looked promising over the summer, floods hit many parts of the state this month. Tamas Hoolihan of the Wisconsin Potato and Vegetable Growers Association, says potato growers in the state endured a dry May, three times the normal rainfall in July, and then a hot August. Hoolihan says how the waterlogged potatoes fare will depend, in part, on where they’re located in the state. He says portions of the central region have more sandy soil, so flood waters will recede more quickly. Not so in areas up north. Hoolihan says the floodwaters there could linger longer, which will create rot and cause the potatoes to form lenticels which make them less marketable. Hoolihan says potato prices are strong this year too, so he says the lost crops were worth even more money than usual. Wisconsin’s roughly 120 commercial potato growers enjoyed record yields last year.

Push for Court Appointed Attorneys in Civil Cases Studied

10/3/10 - It's too expensive for many people to navigate the legal system when they face problems like eviction or child custody disputes. But there's a new effort underway that could change that. While anyone charged with a crime has a constitutional right to have a lawyer appointed for them at public expense if they can't afford one, that's not true for civil cases. Legal Action of Wisconsin is petitioning the Supreme Court to give judges discretion in appointing lawyers in civil cases. Legal Action's Director John Ebbot says the rule would add a paragraph to an already existing rule, saying that the court shall provide counsel at public expense where the assistance of counsel is needed to protect the litigants rights to human needs “including sustenance, shelter , clothing, heat, medical care, safety , child custody and placement, then it gives the court discretion." Ebbot says because it's not clear how many people judges would appoint lawyers for in civil cases, it's impossible to predict exactly how much it would cost county courts to cover the cost of this new rule. But he predicts it could help thousands of people and would likely cost between $50-million and $80-million dollars a year. He says it may take legislative action to implement the rule if the court approves it. Ebbot says at last some of that money could come from the civil claims court filing fees already imposed by county courts. He says too much of that money ends up in other places in the state budget instead of going back to the county courts that generate it.

“Plant Posse”

10/3/10 - Want to be part of a "plant posse?" Federal wildlife officials are asking for volunteers to look for invasive species in the Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge. Volunteers will be supplied with cameras and global positioning systems at the refuge headquarters across the river in Minnesota at Winona. You'll be asked to go to the refuge, take pictures of invasive species, mark the coordinates and enter the location information on the refuge website or Facebook page.

Authorities Warn of Scam

10/3/10 - Oshkosh police warn people living there they may get a check in the mail, but they shouldn’t cash it. It’s a fraud scheme. Realistic-looking checks are being sent by e-mail, snail mail, parcel post and package delivery services. A letter with the fake checks asks for money to be sent to a third party. That letter promises the money is for an inheritance, a secret shopper or foreign lottery winnings. It’s a scam. If you’ve been targeted, you should contact police.

Fish Kill Leaves DNR with Unanswered Questions

10/3/10 - Experts with the DNR say they are puzzled about what might have killed more than 50 fish along the Sugar River. Anglers notified the agency of the problem in western Dane County last week. One water resources specialist says the fish kill probably happened at least a week ago. Mostly brown trout were killed. A few of the dead fish were trophy-sized, more than 10 years old. Although more fish may have died downstream, DNR officials have spent their time looking for the source of contamination. So far they found nothing. Farmers aren't applying much manure to their fields right now and no spraying is going on. Pesticides from somebody cleaning out a tank could be the source, as could something that was disposed of from a bridge over the Sugar River.